“Holacracy Is Rigid, Inflexible, and Doesn’t Account for Messy Human Behavior.” Really?

These excerpts are re-published with permission from Holacracy News.

“Holacracy is rigid, inflexible, and doesn’t account for messy human behavior.”

Perhaps you’ve heard a few of these critiques, or even thought them yourself, in the beginning stages of your Holacracy practice. Frustration is a common experience for Holacracy beginners when they run into boundaries dictated by the Constitution. But what’s the reason for these boundaries? And what potential can be unlocked when colleagues voluntarily adhere to a common rule set?

This month, we share personal stories about the power of Holacracy to transform the human beings practicing it.  We hope you’ll read on and decide for yourself what makes a system “human.”

Practitioner Voices

“Before Holacracy, we focused our discussions on soft stuff: culture, tribe-related matters, etc. Now we know how to handle hard decisions about our work . . . In hindsight, I think we actually impeded not only our organizational development but our personal development too.” 
Annemieke Verhoeff (Concept 7) speaks about how clear boundaries and explicit rules allow partners to handle the tough conversations crucial to advancing purpose-driven work and building authentic relationships.

 “When a facilitator cuts us off, or we catch ourselves wanting to speak out of turn, it shines a light on what’s driving us. The resulting reflection may not be comfortable, but it will help us to know ourselves better.” 

HolacracyOne founder Brian Robertson writes about how Holacracy’s strict processes create opportunities for reflection and growth.

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 “We were forced to separate these kinds of conversations by learning to have power-free conversations among roles . . .”

In a frank and personal blog post, Katrin Muff (Business School Lausanne) opens up about the sometimes painful process of separating organizational work from interpersonal connection.  Katrin also reflects on the fresh possibility that arose when this new human space was recognized and honored.

Learning the Ropes

Playing by new rules will generate tensions and questions that can be hard to process without support. Here are options for getting the help you need to “get” Holacracy.
Get on board with GlassFrog Habit Support.

One of GlassFrog’s newest features offers sequenced, easy-to-digest coaching expertise to strengthen your Holacracy practice.

 

Ask the Community.

The Holacracy Community of Practice offers a wealth of resources, including recorded conversations with experts. The Forums are a space for getting questions answered by members of the global community of Practitioners.

Check out a few of this month’s most popular posts:

Featured Image/graphic link added by Enlivening Edge Magazine